Current fears of antibiotic-resistant bacteria and other microbes as well as of bioterrorism have increased the importance of developing new ways to protect people from microbial infection. It is, for example, important to develop new materials for making clothing that can be more safely worn in contaminated environments. Such materials would be useful, for example, in hospitals and during military and civilian operations where bacterial contamination has occurred, or is expected.
In developing new antimicrobial materials, it is important to discourage further antibiotic resistance. Ideally, therefore, novel antimicrobial materials will function through non-specific, non-metabolic mechanisms.
For example, polycationic (quaternary ammonium) strings developed in the laboratory of Robert Engel are reported to have antibacterial activity. See Fabian et al, Syn. Lett., 1007 (1997); Strekas et al, Arch. Biochem. and Biophys. 364, 129-131 (1999); and Cohen et al, Heteroat. Chem. 11, 546-555 (2000). No suggestion has been made, however, to attach these molecules to surfaces to render the surfaces antimicrobial. Nor have there been any reports regarding which of these molecules would be most effective when attached to surfaces.
Suggestions have been made to attach other antibiotic agents, such as gentamycin and penicillin, to the surface of medical devices. See, for example, Keogh et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,476,509, Ung-Chhun et al, U.S. Pat. No. 6,306,454, Keogh, U.S. Pat. No. 6,033,719, Ragheb et al, U.S. Pat. No. 6,299,604, and Guire, U.S. Pat. No. 5,263,992. See also Kanazawa et al., Polym. Sci., Part A-I 31, 1467-1472 (1993).
There is, clearly, a need for new materials having antimicrobial agents stably attached to their surfaces. Ideally, the antimicrobial agents do not lead to resistance, and are not detached from their surfaces when the material is washed. It is particularly desirable to develop such materials suitable for use in making clothing. Especially needed is microbe-resistant clothing made of carbohydrate and/or protein based materials, such as cotton, wool and silk as well as blends thereof. It is further desirable to develop other types of antimicrobial surfaces, such as paper and wood surfaces.